Spencer and Cheryl, the beautiful Sebastopol geese, are dipping their heads in the bucket. This clears their eyes and keeps the membranes smooth. Poor Eunice, the wry neck cripple Rouen duck, was bathing by herself, away from the harm of the other ducks who do not like her.

Eunice, the wry neck cripple Rouen duck, is going home to the duck shelter, but the two Sebastopol geese are enjoying the last rays of the sun, though it is bitterly cold.

Last spring The Fat Ewe Farm acquired a pair of Sebastopol goslings, a male and a female. They are less hardy than the regularly feathered geese, with the openess of their plumage not being as warm as the tight feathered friends. When the predator came from the sky, it attached one of the Sebastopols and tore the wing off at the last joint, but he is recovered now. In that same incident, his foot was injured and for a long time he limped around. I checked his foot over and again to ensure there was nothing broken, but it was very swollen. I am grateful that it has healed and he has full use of it now.

Sebastopols are an ornamental breed of geese, kept for the exquisite beauty. When fully feathered in the summer, they appear to float across the lawn wearing long gowns of white ruffles. Their feathers grow poorly in a curled fashion and the wing feathers can be askew as well, giving them a very unkempt appearance when they are growing feathers. However, the geese look spectacular when they are fully dressed. Due to small numbers, there is not an adquate gene pool in Canada, and many of these geese are inbred leading to poor fertility rates. For that reason, they are sometimes mated with other breeds of geese . If the ruffled feather pattern is dominant, then the offspring are much hardier than the pure Sebastopols and also will be more fertile usually. Then the resultant bird is a coloured Sebastopol, not a recognized breed of goose, but still a very beautiful one.

The Sebastopols seem to stay together. Geese tend to mate for a long time, if not for life. Hopefully they will have little Sebastopol goslings, but if not, the Toulouse cross gander will mate with the female and possibly produce coloured Sebastopols, most likely grey splash on white. In any event, they birds are beautiful and a joy to watch and a wonderful addition to the Fat Ewe Farm. Oh, and poor Eunice…the wry neck Rouen.

It is not only human nature that shuns those who are not like the others. I see the ducks bite her and try to move her away, so she remains after they have left to eat or to bathe. My heart breaks for her, my Eunice. She stayed after the ducks went home so she could bathe in peace without the biting of many bills trying to mover her away. Nature can be cruel as well as beautifule.